Now, this may a bit of a controversial event (and book) as there are many within the UMSU Wom*n’s Dept (and outside it) who have differing perspectives on pornography, the variety of feminist responses to it, and especially some of the writers who have contributed to this book. The event is posted here in the interests of impartiality and exposure for all feminist-related stuff happening on campus.

Hopefully the event/book will be thought-provoking no matter where you stand. If anyone wants to attend, perhaps we could incorporate this into Feminist Discussion Group.

Three contributors to this new book from Spinifex Press will speak:

Dr Meagan Tyler:
Spectacular Sex? Pornography and sex therapy collide

Many sex therapists now recommend pornography as a form of “treatment” and some therapists even produce their own “sex education” videos, promising couples spectacular sex. But what exactly is the education and treatment on offer and should we be worried about it?

Professor Sheila Jeffreys:
Live Pornography: Strip Clubs in the International Political Economy

This talk will examine the normalisation of the strip club industry and the way in which this is intertwined with pornography and other aspects of the sex industry.

It is now widely acknowledged that the unprecedented mainstreaming of the global pornography industry is transforming the sexual politics of intimate and public life, popularising new forms of hardcore misogyny, and strongly contributing to the sexualisation of children. Yet challenges to the pornography industry continue to be dismissed as uncool, anti-sex and moral panics.

With contributions from leading world experts and activists, Big Porn Inc offers a cutting edge exposé of the hidden realities of a multi-billion dollar global industry that promotes itself as a fashionable life-style choice.

Unmasking the lies behind the selling of porn as ‘just a bit of fun’ Big Porn Inc reveals the shocking truths of an industry that trades in violence, crime and degradation. This fearless book will change the way you think about pornography forever.

Acknowledgement

This website was created on Wurundjeri land. We respectfully acknowledge the traditional owners of the stolen lands and waters of this area. We also acknowledge that those of us who live, study, and work here and are not indigenous are thus beneficiaries of the dispossession of Aboriginal people.